The Depot Addition Project

Thank you to those residents who attended and participated in the November 16th discussion on the project. We appreciate your comments and suggestions, and they will be part of the Board’s consideration on whether to move forward with the project. The Park District will be providing answers to all public comments and questions on our FAQ link at the bottom of this page.

Project Information

The River Forest Park District Board of Commissioners is considering the construction of a 9,200 SF high school sized gymnasium and a 3,000 SF single story space to allow expanded programming opportunities at The Depot. The gymnasium would include a 2 or 3 lane walking track around the basketball court.

The Park District currently has agreements with District 90, Trinity High School, St. Luke School, and the River Forest Community Center for the use of indoor space. In addition, the Park District has previously had agreements with District 200 and Grace Lutheran School. These partnerships have been important for the ability of the Park District to offer recreation programs, and we look forward to continuing these partnerships and utilizing these spaces.

Over the past decade, Park District program registrations have risen steadily, as has our need for more program space. At the same time, our partners’ need for their own space has also risen, which is limiting the availability of these spaces. As a result, partner space during desired times and days are becoming more difficult to secure, and we are experiencing more incidents of scheduled programs getting bumped due to conflicts.

In 2012, the Park District conducted a community survey to help us evaluate the recreation and programming needs of our community. Those survey results showed a strong desire in our community for increased adult/senior fitness and wellness programming. Unfortunately, we have limited opportunities to offer these types of programs at our partner facilities due to scheduling and safety concerns. In 2012, the Park District opened the platform tennis facility for our adult population, and the facility is operating at 20% over its capacity.

The Park Board expects demands on the current facilities in our community to continue to rise and does not see space opportunities to offer desired adult and senior programming. In addition to our current and past partners, the Park District has reached out to both Concordia and Dominican Universities, St. Vincent Ferrer School, and private organizations outside our Village limits and have been unable to secure additional space. The Park Board feels it is an appropriate time to consider constructing a minimal size indoor facility to meet our residents’ current and future recreation programming needs.